Sketches of Life: Sketches of the Shadows
by xAoibarax
Summary: A slice of life story following the lives of spiritmaster and teacher Fenghuang and his family, troubled musical prodigy Shiratora, his friends, peers and teachers, and the innocent Vanahallan young man filled with many dreams named Kaninchen Nacht.
1. Way of Morning

"...Be warned; many of Beritra's highest ranking legions lurk in this cave. Try to stay in a small group so you do not take more than you can handle as much as possible, no go on, for Asmodae!" Loud and clear, the general commanded as he dispatched his army. The veteran soldiers, hardened and polished in combat after many centuries of long wars against the Elyos and Balaurs, roared as loud as they could after the general gave command.

In the crowd of soldiers, there was a midnight haired woman with a hair reaching her lower back, and bangs which obstruct her forehead, lilac skinned woman, who silently prayed to Azphel for protection in order to survive so she can reunite with her husband. "Lord Azphel, please let me survive so my husband and grandnephew will not grieve in misery..."

**~x~**

The army finally reached the cave in name, and the higher ranked soldiers were organizing their own group to venture into the pitch black. After a few 'you go into that group, you go there's, arguings, more details about the plan and change of plans from fresh information from spies, the group started dispatching, into the darkness filled with dangerous.

"Kooryuu, you have a fairly good sense of presence do you?" The midnight haired woman's muscle ripped, male partner asked. "I suppose we can let you be the ones to tell us to hush when you feel something is coming,"

Kooryuu, feeling the uneasy air blow her long mane matching the color of her hair, nods muttering a serious 'yes' to her colleague. Her long experience for almost over thousand years as a daeva had made it easy for her to sense approaching enemies, including assassins and rangers who are in the most strongest stealth. The group asked others to use their combat friendly 'special senses' as they ventured deeper.

In the middle of the cave, the army stopped for a moment after Kooryuu asked everyone to stop moving as she feels something is approaching. "...Something small, not the blasted drakans, are approaching..." Kooryuu silently tells her team as she looks in all directions, hoping that the creature will not notice them. Suddenly, an army of caltrops ambushed the team, and started latching on each soldier. One by one, the caltrops started burying each soldier burying each caltrops latching onto them.

Kooryuu tried to scream for help, but she couldn't as the caltrop's hard bodies covered her mouth, she could not breathe either. From the small gap, she could see her comrades drowning in the sea of caltropses. The world went pitch black, she started to lose her conciousness.

**~x~**

A young Asmodian daeva, who just recently ascended, and started learning medicine and healing in one of the most renowned academies of Asmodae was slowly waking up from his sleep. It is only a few months since he started living with his granduncle, and started to live away from his family who lived in the outskirts of Pernon. As usual, he walked towards his dresser, started styling his wavy, dusty rose medium hair and dressed in his usual, outlandishly stylish clothes which rivals the Vanahal Haute Couture designers. Style was a part of him, and he is also happy he gets to see the ever changing fashion in Pandaemonium.

After finishing packing his cube with his homework, and other academic necessities, he stepped outside to greet his granduncle's fire servant. "Good morning, young master" the spirit's muffled yet low voice spoke to the young daeva.

"Morning Ifrit, just call me Yuelang, as I am not really the master of this house anyways" The young man, Yuelang chuckles at the spirit. Before the spirit or the man could speak anything more, both heard muffled screams in the room next to Yuelang's. The fire spirit's lava blazed brighter and cackled as both rushed to the next room and slammed open out of instinct...Only to see something which should not be seen yet mind imprinting...

**~x~**

In reality, Kooryuu, one of the elite archons of Asmodae, was merely having a nightmare, and the caltropses were actually her husband, Fenghuang latching onto her like a manduri climbing on a tree. Not noticing reality and dreams, Kooryuu struggles in the latching of her beloved, making muffled screams. Her husband did not move, nor heard or felt her muffled screams. He kept sleeping, latching onto his dear wife. Kooryuu, being a seasoned gladiator, was strong enough to roll on the king sized bed around with her husband attached onto her body. Still, Fenghuang did not wake up.

As Yuelang and Ifrit witnessed the bed sheets wrapping the two bodies like sushi rolls, they couldn't help but snicker at the situation. Eventually, it ended with the wrapped couples falling off the bed, with a loud and clear thud which the downstairs can absolutely hear. The thud was painful enough to wake the two out of their sleep, as well as their wind summon and pet, who was sleeping peacefully in his basket before the loud thud.

Kooryuu sat up, along with her husband, who was scratching his head, looking around at what has happened, wondering why their sides hurt so much. After capturing the fact that theyhave waken up, the couples looked at their grandnephew and their fire servant.

"...Um, good morning granduncle, grandaunt..." Yuelang looked with a rather uneasy and awkward expression. Wondering why their grandnephew and fire servant looked so awkward, Kooryuu and Fenghuang both realized, that they were both naked. "I...Will go make breakfast myself, so see you later in the afternoon!" The grandnephew shouts as Ifrit whisked him away.

_I swear I am going to bring this when I return to the flow of the aether..._ He mutters as he had a piece of toast in his mouth as he left for class.


	2. Rondo of School Mornings

The Lumiel Academy, Asmodae's most prestigious academy for adults, owns an academy made to give the high quality education to children of daevas, or daevas who have ascended before adulthood to continue their education, called Shadow Orb Academy. Every morning at the dormitories of the Shadow Orb Academy, many children, human or daeva alike, will be running to get to their classes before they get a late slip.

At one certain section of the dormitory, where some students because of their condition, are put into single person dorms. These are usually reserved for the students who have been deemed difficult to handle. Many children like to call this said section the 'skid row'.

In one room in these special dorms, there was a purple skinned, black haired boy who was struggling to get up.

"No...No...stopitstopitstopitstopitstopit...!" The boy cowers in fear, thinking about the nightmare he sees almost everyday. It is about his past, where Elyos soldiers experimented his parents to insanity, while he was isolated, used as a slave which the Elyos could touch or use his body whenever they wished, man or woman alike.

A few minutes later, the boy took a deep sigh as a way to finally get himself to change into his school uniform.

_Why. Why do I need to think and see my past every single fucking day...?_ He thought as he adjusted his blouse, tie before putting on his jacket. _I don't even wanna face that time, where those sun blasted assholes did whatever they wished with me and mom and dad._ The child took on a face of agony as he thought about the tortures nightmares he faced everyday.

Finally finished, and filling his cube with his academic necessities, and his violin, he stepped out of his dorm, only to be greeted by a familiar disembodied voice.

"GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORNING!"

Swoosh. Poof. The source of the so called disembodied voice appeared. It was his next dorm room classmate and friend, Wells, who is undergoing assassin training by his parents. Immediately, the turquoise haired, crimson eyed boy appeared in front of the purple skinned child.

"WAH! Wells?! Why do you have to do this annoying bullshit every morning?" The kid growled, clenching his fist so hard that he could have pierced his own skin with his claws.

"C'mon Shiratora, you are soooooo cute when you get surprised you know?" Wells chuckled, despite his friend being annoyed at his daily antics of surprising him by using his advanced stealth and letting it go.

Shiratora blushed, then let out a hmph. "Whatever. Just hurry up or else that old man is gonna give us slips again!"

"Stop caling instructor Fenghuang 'old man'" Wells chuckles as they walk down the hallways leading to the classroom areas. "Everyone knows you respect him alot, well, so do I too. And what kind of girl and guy like me would wanna call him an old man?"

As Wells smiled, Shiratora snarled a 'shut up' and blushed even further, trying not to take a single glance at his friend.

**~x~**

A young looking female teacher, with light pink-purple skin and pink twin tailed ringlets arrived in the classroom. After taking her teacher handbook, music sheets, baton, her viola out of her cube, she adjusted her frilly dress of laces. She sat on the stool behind the conductor's stand, looking over today's agenda, making sure she will not mess up on her schedule.

She glanced over at the cello and double bass stands; they were in their holders, but they weren't in the correct spots they were supposed to be. The quarter sized double bass was placed in the holder for the half sized double basses, it was almost about to tip over. The full sized double bass was placed in the quarter size holders, barely standing properly and was about to tip over too.

_Oh sweet Azphel, why do these kids even not take care of their instruments?_ The woman sighed in utter annoyance. I have notes and announcements from the headmaster, and placing name cards on the stands before class even starts! Oh well, I suppose this is what being a teacher means. I really need to make the punishments for doing this even more stricter now on.

Being a teacher who teaches two subjects wasn't an easy job at all. Haon not only teaches music, but she also teaches alchemy as well. On her early days, she often misread the schedule, and has arrived to her classes late. On some other days, her cello and double bass students may leave their instruments in disarray, making her clean up after them and get late to her alchemy classes.

After double checking her agenda for today, arranging the seats in orchestra position and placing name cards, she got ready to put the instruments back in proper place.

_All right. Now this annoying job!_ She approached the big stringed instruments as she rolled her sleeves of her blouse.

She carefully, and precisely, placed the cellos back in their original positions, matching their sizes from quarter to full size. Now, the cellos were back in their sizes. This time, it was the double basses. Haon, being rather short in stature, often has hard time adjusting the full sizes back into their positions, so she brought her stool to the double basses. She placed the double bases. One by one. Gently. Until.

Tip.

_Oh Azphel...!_ She scrowls as she saw the double basses tip over each other, like a domino. She could not move out of shock, she couldn't really stop the tipping instruments either.

Until.

A familiar man, her best friend, and rival from her days as an archon sorcerer instructor came to her classroom, to check on one of her students.

"Watch out!" She screamed as the double bass was about to land on the man's head.

Fortunately, he was able to dodge the double basses. Fortunately, the floor was a carpet, so the scrolls of the double basses would have less impact on them.

The two teachers sighed in relief. Haon clenched her fist and took a deep breath in frustration at the disaster which just happened.


	3. Wolf and Rabbit

"Kaninchen! Have you gotten everything?" A woman, who is around her fifties shouted at her son who is scrambling for his things and into the cube.

"Yep! I just feel like I forgotten where I placed my homework!" The young man with platinum blonde hair, charcoal grey skin and a noticable bobbed mane like a tail of a larail, Kaninchen scrambled through his desk for a few moments until he finally found the important piece of paper he needed.

"Alright mother, I found it!" He answers as he places the paper into his cube, which was filled with stationary and other academic things.

"Kaninchen, you have just ascended, and you still are clumsy like this since you were a little boy. Being Vanahallan, don't you know how much important it is that you keep yourself tidy and organized?" The woman let out a big sigh. "Anyways, I want you to have a good day, show your power of knowledge at the Lumiel Academy, show it," The woman approached her son, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "And don't get lost again on the way OK?"

"Yes, mother!" The young Vanahallan ran as he blew a kiss to his mother.

He just stepped outside of the Vanahal district when he took a stop, and remembered a popular snack stand everyone eats before class starts in the morning.

_I should go there...I should probably fill the corners of my stomach before class ends.._.

So, rather than the usual direction to Lumiel Academy, Kaninchen headed in the direction to where the snack stand is._ I remember Yuelang said it was this way...Was it?_ Kaninchen got lost in the thought of the juicy porgus dog which everyone enjoyed eating in the morning. His steps became slower and slwoer as he imagined the thought of taking a bite of the porgus dog.

10 minutes passed. It was about 20 minutes before class starts, and the snack stand happens to be nowhere.

He stood in the middle of the streets which is just starting to bustle with people. Kaninchen was getting very nervous.

_Now everyone is gonna laugh at me and call me the Larail who can't find its hole again! And I am gonna drive mother up to the obelisk again!_

**~x~**

_Oh Lord Marchutan, why did the fate had to be that I have to see Granduncle and Grandaunt waking up from their kinky night?_

Yuelang still could not bleach the sight of his naked daeva guardians. It was literally stuck in his mind, as if it were to be brought with him when he returns to the flow of the aether. After a few seconds of standing in front of the front door of his home, he finally got himself to move on to Lumiel Academy.

As he walked through the front yard, a familiar earth spirit dug up from the ground. As the soil formed into a pair of hands, then formed a head, the creature pushed its way out of the soil.

"Ah...Good morning, youngling," The earth spirit spoke, in its deep, thundering voice which is intimidating yet gentle. It was Fenghuang's earth servant, Renibus. He usually sleeps in the soils of the garden as he enjoys taking care of the plants and flowers, which makes the front yard and the garden very beautiful.

"Morning Renibus," Yuelang smiled as the chilly yet gentle breeze of Pernon ruffles Yuelang's curly hair.

"I heard some screams in the morning, did something happen to Master Fenghuang and the dear mistress?" The earth spirit asked as he started his usual first thing of filling the watering can with water.

"Oh...It was just...Grandaunt having a nightmare," The young man awkwardly chuckles, as the image he saw earlier sweeps back into his mind.

Afterwards, the two started talking like old friends, discussing various aspects of life and other stories of their lives.

"Ah, well, if that is so...Well, you will get late wouldn't you? I am sorry I have held you on for a bit, young one," The spirit then moved further into the other bushes to tell Yuelang that he should probably go.

"Oh yes! Well then, see you later Renibus!" Yuelang ran to the nearest teleporter to his house. After jumping a few more teleporters, he reached the teleporter to send him to Pandaemonium.

_Draks! Does he have no sense of direction?_

At the Vifrost bridge, the sound of the waterfalls echoed as the waters spattered down at the rocks. It was so loud that you can hear it with the bustling voices of the bustling crowds of Pandaemonium. As Yuelang swam through the busy crowds of Pandaemonium, he groaned as he saw his friend and classmate at the Vifrost bridge.

The charcoal grey skinned man waved at Yuelang frantically, suggesting that he was in a panic. "Yuelang! Over here!"

"Kaninchen! How in the Aion's name did you get here?" Yuelang shouted as he quickly struggled through the crowd towards his friend.

"I don't know...I just wanted to get the Porgus dogs before class but I somehow got here?" Kaninchen approached his approaching friend.

The ghost white skinned man with curly red hair face palmed at what his friend said. "For Azphel's sake, that is in a totally different direction from where you walked from Vanahal district. Anyways, no time for Porgus dogs because we can have them for lunch, and we are almost late!" Yuelang then grabbed Kaninchen's wrist, and ran towards Lumiel Academy.


End file.
